Happy Valentines Day!

Valentines Day is supposed to be a day when you share a little extra love with your loved ones.  Wanted to pass on that love to everyone that visits my blog!

These days we seem to live in a world of the politics of fear... We need to get beyond starting wars with the rest of the world and work towards world peace. I was at Duke Gardens a few weeks ago and found this ancient garden bench that stuck in my mind ever since. I just had to share it with you. Now I know a little about this bench.

 This bench is across the the visitor center before you enter Duke Gardens. I looked up this quote and found this: Goldwin Smith is credited with the quote "Above all nations is humanity," an inscription that was engraved in a stone bench he offered to Cornell in May 1871. Further investigations on this quote revealed this blog post from 2007, perhaps inspired by that same 1871 bench at Cornell on global warming.

I found a photo of the Cornell bench, this appears to be and exact replica. The Cornell Chronicle has an article about the bench being broken in 1998.  The article stated that the first bench was quarried from Dr Cornell's own quarry and cost $275 to build. Rebuilding the bench back in 1998 cost an estimated $40,000!

One of these days I'll share with you some of the many many garden benches in the gardens, a few of the best ones were removed for refurbishing the last time I visited the gardens.

Giant Bottle Flowers!

About a year ago I saw this huge bottle flower in Durham, NC. Did not have the camera with me, but promised myself I'd return with a camera. It was a nice cloudy day and I  was close by with some free time and I finally took some photos for your enjoyment. Just might have to get my plumber buddy who enjoys working with scrap steel and a welder make us one of these.

I wondered how the bottles were installed as you do not want water getting inside, the water freezes and breaks the bottles. Now I know the artist welded in lag screws which you screw into corks to hold the bottles in.  believe this is the best bottle art I have seen.... We have enough blue bottles saved to make 6 of these I'd guess.

 Finally R. L. Wheeler camellia opened up in the garden today! Bad news is tonight it is dropping down to 20 degrees. Think I'll cover it with a sheet to protect the other unopened buds. Got to say this flower has an array of stamens unlike any other camellia in our garden. The bees will love this one for sure. Today it is too windy and cold for the bees to enjoy the nectar in it.